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Washington, D.C. – The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR)
condemns the death of Jean Robert Lors, a 31-year-old Haitian national who
reportedly died as a result of being beaten by agents of the General
Directorate of Migration and of the police, during a massive repatriation
roundup carried out in the neighborhood of El Tanque, Juan Dolio, in the
Dominican Republic.

According to publicly available information, on May 14, 2013,
agents of the General Directorate of Migration, in conjunction with
Dominican police, reportedly broke the locks and violently entered the home
of Jean Robert Lors. During the raid, Jean Robert Lors, who had a visa
authorizing him to work in the Dominican Republic, was reportedly not
allowed to show his immigration documents; nor was he allowed to get dressed
before they took him out of his house. The agents reportedly beat him
repeatedly with the butts of their weapons and kicked him when he was on the
ground. He received medical treatment at Darío Contreras Hospital for
traumatic brain injury and fractures in the L6 and L7 vertebrae, in the neck
area. He died on May 23, 2013.

The Inter-American Commission is concerned that this same roundup
also included the detention of Marlene Antoine, a Haitian national married
to a Dominican citizen. According to the information that is available,
Marlene Antoine was taken, along with her 3-year-old son, to the Haina
Detention Center. During her detention there, the child reportedly suffered
a head injury that required sutures to close the wound. The transfer to the
medical center reportedly took place the day after he was injured.

Commissioner Felipe González, IACHR Rapporteur on the Rights of Migrants,
stated that “the information we have received regarding these events is of
utmost concern to the Commission. In any immigration control action, States
have the obligation to ensure that their authorities respect the rights to
life and to the physical and psychological integrity of all persons,
regardless of their immigration status.”

The Inter-American Commission urges the authorities in the Dominican
Republic to investigate these acts diligently and impartially, and in
particular to investigate whether the death of Jean Robert Lors was the
result of excessive use of force by agents of the General Directorate of
Migration and of the police.

In addition, the Inter-American Commission calls on the Dominican
Republic to adopt all measures that may be necessary to guarantee the
application of international standards regarding the use of force in
immigration control operations; the observance of due process in immigration
procedures that tend to result in deportation; the exceptional nature of
immigration-related detentions; detention under conditions in keeping with
human dignity; and the prohibition of mass expulsions.

A principal, autonomous body of the Organization of American States
(OAS), the IACHR derives its mandate from the OAS Charter and the American
Convention on Human Rights. The Inter-American Commission has a mandate to
promote respect for human rights in the region and acts as a consultative
body to the OAS in this area. The Commission is composed of seven
independent members who are elected in an individual capacity by the OAS
General Assembly and who do not represent their countries of origin or
residence.